TMF awards U.S. AbilityOne Commission $1.8M to update procurement software
The Technology Modernization Fund will provide the U.S. AbilityOne Commission with $1.8 million in project funding to update its Procurement List Information Management System software.
The software directly supports the department’s mission by connecting employers of individuals who are blind or who have significant disabilities with federal agency customers.
According to the General Services Administration, the investment will improve the connection between the agency and the citizens it is intended to support, and also increase program oversight.
Commenting on the award, TMF Board Chair and Federal CIO Clare Martorana said: “AbilityOne is a small, independent agency with an extremely meaningful mission. During the pandemic, the AbilityOne program has been pivotal in keeping the federal government and U.S. military operating through nationwide surge to meet exponential increases in demand.”
“Many AbilityOne employees are designated as essential workers; their duties include staffing critical non-interruptible services, such as dining facilities and switchboard operations at military bases and VA hospitals, as well as call centers for the IRS and with the support of the TMF, this investment will ensure AbilityOne can continue providing these essential services without interruption,” she added.
Jeff Koses, GSA senior procurement executive in the Office of Governmentwide Policy and U.S. AbilityOne Commission chairperson, said: “AbilityOne is pleased to partner with the TMF to modernize our PLIMS system. The investment will increase the Commission’s ability to execute its statutory oversight of the program and will benefit the federal customers who depend on AbilityOne products and services, as well as the program’s 450 nonprofits, which employ 40,000 people on AbilityOne contracts.”
The AbilityOne Commission award is the latest federal government IT modernization project to receive funding from the TMF. Earlier this month, the Office of Personnel Management, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Army received a combined total of more than $21 million from the GSA-managed fund to support IT modernization programs.
Since its inception, the fund has announced investments totaling over $600 million for a variety of federal modernization projects, which have ranged from developing Login.gov to digitizing temporary worker visa programs and modernizing crop inspection systems.
The TMF, housed within GSA, is overseen by the Technology Modernization Board, which is made up of senior IT leaders from across the government.
The fund has received $175 million through the annual budget process and $1 billion through the American Rescue Plan to fund modernization projects to date.
